


All you need is a partner in crime

by SeaSparkle



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Awkward Conversations, Coran and lance have a heart to heart, Mercenaries, Minor Character Death, Minor hidge, Minor hunk/pidge - Freeform, Multi, Nightmares, kind of, vague mention of violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-27
Updated: 2018-03-11
Packaged: 2018-12-20 10:48:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11919315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeaSparkle/pseuds/SeaSparkle
Summary: Lance was gone. With no trace of him and no idea what could have happened to him they are forced to accept that he's gone. That is, until Keith runs into him in the most unlikely way.





	1. When the past comes knocking

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so, this is the first chapter to my partners in crime Au. I talked about it on my tumblr and people were interested in reading more so... here it is!  
> Apologies for the fact that I'm not the most amazing writer in the world. Also for the first part.

Keith ran after the sniper as soon as he spotted him.

They had been planet side, talking with the leaders of a planet that was not under Galra control. Keith had been wandering aimlessly around town himself. He was never very good at diplomatic talks. No matter how many he attended. Out of nowhere a shot had rang out, scattering the crowd. A man had fallen to the ground.

He ran over, seeing that the man had a large wound in the side of his head. Frantically, he scanned the area around them, looking for the shooter.

Then he saw him, jumping off a building and slinging the sniper rifle onto his back. Without even sparing a glance in the direction of the fallen man the sniper ran off. Keith was right behind him.

At some point the sniper realized he was being followed. He looked over his shoulder and cursed, picking up the pace. He tried to loose Keith by jumping over obstacles and taking sharp turns, but Keith was hot on his tail. 

Luckily for Keith (and unlucky for the sniper) they soon came to a dead end. The man skidded to a stop but Keith plowed into him, causing them both to tumble to the ground. He thought it would be harder to pin the man to the ground, but he didn't put up much of a fight. 

"Who are you?" Keith demanded, "Why did you shoot that man?"

His question was met with silence for a few minutes. Just when he was beginning to think the man wasn't going to say anything to him, the sniper squeaked out his own question.

"Keith?"

The paladin foze. That voice. It was... but it couldn't be...

He lifted his hand and took hold of the mask the man was wearing. He tore it off and tossed it away. 

Deep blue eyes immidiately met his.

It was all the same, but different. The bronzed skin was still smooth and clear, but it was marked with two large scars. His hair wasn't short anymore, and it had gone all wavy, but it was still the same silky dark locks. The smirk he gave him was the same too.

"Lance?" He asked, sounding breathless despite having caught his breath.

"Long time no see." The man- no Lance said.

Keith didn't know how to feel. So many feelings were fighting for control. Confusion, happiness, betrayal, anger, sadness. 

The anger won out.

 

Coran pressed a cold pack to Lance's face. The Cuban hissed, moving his own hand up to hold it in place when prompted. The room was silent, save for the constant background noise of the castle. Coran spoke few words, Lance didn't say much either. Keith didn't say anything at all.

Suddenly, the door opened and in rushed Pidge and Hunk. They weren't on the planet with the other's. They'd stayed behind to work on something while Keith, Allura, and Shiro had gone planet side to speak with the leaders of this planet.

"Lance is that... is that really you?" Hunk asked, taking hesitant steps toward the former paladin. Out of all of them, it was Hunk who'd put the most into finding Lance. He'd never given up hope that the blue paladin was alive and well, despite there being no trace of him. He didn't give up, even when they had to move on. Keith wondered if that's what he was like when Shiro was missing. During that time, him and Pidge had grown closer. Pidge helped look for signs of him, the same as she once did for her brother. Even though they all had to move on, they still managed to look without it getting in the way of the mission. Despite their efforts, however, they never found anything. The was no trace of Lance anywhere. Until now anyway.

Lance set the ice pack down. He then pushed himself out of his seat and stepped towards Hunk. He looked so different. It wasn't just the hair, or the scars on his face. His arms looked a little stronger. The way he held himself was a little different. Even the way he walked was different. The weird armor he was wearing didn't help either. He looked like he belonged in some sort of cyberpunk movie or something.

"Yeah. It's me, Hunk. Feel free to punch me too, if you want."

Hunk immediately shot Keith a look, "You punched him?"

"Forgive me if I didn't know how to process the fact that Lance left us and became an assassin." Keith frown.

Everyone looked at Lance again, as if looking for confirmation.

Lance rubbed the back of his head, "I wouldn't say assassin. I usually don't kill anyone. But before you freak out, that guy was a spy! He works for a group that's been known to work for the galra!"

"Lance, what happened to you?" Pidge asked, moving to stand close to Hunk infront of Lance, "You were just gone. And now your here. There's a lot we don't know and I just don't understand."

With a sigh, Lance crossed his arms, "Look. Does it matter what happened? I left. End of story."

Keith, no longer able to stay silent, stomped over to Lance, "Yes, it does matter! You abandoned your duty, Lance! You were a paladin of Voltron and you abandoned that. You abandoned the universe to the galra empire!"

Lance was thrown off by Keith's sudden rage at first. But he soon got over his shock and scowled back, "We all know I wasn't paladin material. I wasn't meant to be a part of Voltron. There were too many of us. Even though Shiro couldn't fly the black lion, there were six paladins instead of five. I told you, the best thing I could do for voltron was to stand aside!"

Coran, Pidge, and Hunk all looked at Keith. This was the first they'd heard about Lance speaking with Keith about something like that. 

Keith balled his hands into fists at his sides, "And I told you to let me worry about that! I told you everything would work itself out!"

"Well, it did, didn't it!? I left and you were better off without me!" Lance yelled back.

Hunk was about to intervene when Keith shoved past Lance and stormed out of the room. 

For a minute of two, everything was silent again. Lance stared at the door Keith had exited though, his hands balled into tight fists at his sides. Nobody seemed to know what to say. But someone had to say something.

"Lance..." Coran began, placing a hand on the former paladin's shoulder, instantly drawing his attention. "Why don't I bring you to your room? It's just the way you left it. Maybe you can get some rest before the other's get back. I'm afraid when they do, you're going to have to explain why you left."

With a sigh, Lance let his arms drop to his sides in defeat, "Yeah. Okay."

With a little wave to Hunk and Pidge, Lance followed Coran out of the room. The minute the door closed, Hunk sat down right where his was. He pressed a hand over his mouth and stared into space. Pidge knelt down next to him, placing her hand on Hunk's shoulder's.

"Hunk? You gonna be okay?" She asked. 

Hunk shook his head. No. No he wasn't.

 

By the time he got to his room, Keith had cooled down a little bit. He entered with a heavy sigh and made his way over to his bed. He sat down on the edge, his head falling into his hands. He just sat there. Body folded over and fingers gripping his dark hair tightly.

Emotions buzzed under his skin like electricity. He couldn't even distiguish one for the other. All he could say was that he could feel. He could feel way way too much and he just wanted it to stop.

Did Lance really leave the team all on his own? Just packed his things one night and took off without telling anyone? Because he didn't feel useful? Were his insecurities really that bad?

It was strange. Keith hadn't thought of it as a big deal when Lance had come into his room and talked about stepping down all that time ago. He'd thought Lance would stop worrying about it when he told him he didn't need to. He didn't see that he clearly didn't give Lance the answer he needed to hear.

Thinking back on that night, the things he said... he was an idiot. Lance clearly needed reassurance. He needed someone to tell him that he was doing okay. That he was useful and skilled and needed. He'd come to Keith seaking reassurance, and what did Keith give him? A bullshit answer about things working themselves out.

God, why was he so stupid when it came to Lance?

He realized, all of a sudden, that this was his fault. He'd failed as a leader and as a friend. On top of that, he had failed to find him. He gave up and excepted Lance was gone, and they weren't going to find him. If he had just looked a little harder, would they have found him? Would they have been able to convice him to come back home?

Keith face suddently felt wet. Angrily, he wiped at the tears, only for more to begin to fall. Keith didn't cry often. The fact that he was now was almost as much of a shock to him as finding Lance on that planet. Almost as much of a shock as watching the cheerful, joking, happy Cuban kill a man right in front of his eyes.

Running a hand through his hair, he let himself fall back onto his bed, "God Lance... what happened to you?"

 

It was just how he remembered it. The knick knacks he'd collected from various planets he'd visited during his time as paladin were still there. They were a little dusty, but after a quick wipe with his sleeve and he could look over each one, reminiscing about the past.

Smiling sadly to himself, he put down the little dancing alien he'd been looking over and moved over to his bed. With a groan, he sat down. He was still a little sore from Keith tackling him to the ground.

Keith. He didn't think he'd ever see him again. Or any of the paladins for that matter. When he left he'd accepted that.

A vibrating at his hip brought him out of his thoughts. He reached around and pulled out his communication device. He pressed the button and the face of his partner appeared on the screen.

"Lance? What happened? Where are you? You were suppose to check in with me almost two hours ago." She sounded like the perfect mix of worried and annoyed. Worried because something could have happened to him and annoyed that he didn't call when he was suppose to. Honestly, he was surprised she had waited this long to check on him. If there was one thing she didn't have, it was patients.

"Sorry Nixxa. Don't worry, I got the job done. You can go ahead and meet the client and collect." He told her. Even to him his voice sounded tired.

She frowned, "Okay. That's all well and good, but where are you?"

"I uh... I ran into everyone. Like, paladins of voltron everyone. Needless to say they were a little shocked to see me." Lance admitted.

"I wonder why." Nixxa deadpanned. A tic or so passed before she asked, "Are you okay?"

Lance cleared his throat, "Well, yeah. I'm in the castle right now. Keith was the one who found me so he would take no for an answer. I'm waiting for everyone to get back so they can grill me about where I've been. Hopefully they don't like, beat me up or something. I already got punch so..."

"Of course you got punched." Nixxa said, rolling her eyes.

"Ha, yeah. Anyway you go on to the meet spot. I'll message you if I need a ride outta here, okay?" He said.

"You sure you're alright? You don't need me to come keep them from beating you up? Is your leg okay?" She asked, clearly still worried about him. She knew this had to be hard for him.

"Yeah, I'm fine Nixxa." He reassured her, "It's a little awkward, but I should be alright. If they beat me up then that's fine. I deserve it. So long as they leave my leg alone I think I'm good."

Nixxa nodded, "Alright. I'm gonna go now and get the GAC. Try not to get beaten up too bad. I'm to picky to find another partner."

Lance laughed, "I know. I'll keep you updated, alright?"

"Alright." 

They ended the transmission and Lance put the device away again.

He didn't know how everyone was going to react. Probably badly. He did disappear in the middle of the night without so much as an explanation. He didn't even leave a note. He was worried that, if he left a note, they'd have a better idea of how to find him. It was better for everyone if they didn't, so he ended up not leaving one. 

He wasn't meant to be a paladin of voltron. Deep down, he knew it. The only thing he really had to offer was piloting a lion. At first that was enough. They needed five paladins to for Voltron. He was one of those paladins. But then Shiro when missing (again) and everything changed. They needed Voltron. That meant that they needed a new black paladin. Black had chosen Keith. It made sense. Keith had talent. He barely had to try and he was deemed the best pilot of their time at the garrison. At first, Keith had struggled, but then he thrived in his new role as leader. Once Lance excepted that no matter how hard he tried, he wasn't meant for great things like Keith, he was able to be happy for him. He was able to support him. 

Then he lost Blue. She locked him out and it hit him all the harder how unspecial he was. Apperently not even what he and Blue had was special. She let Allura fly her and Red let him become his pilot in Keith's absence. Well, someone had to pilot her while Keith was in Black.

When they found Shiro, it hit him that there were now six paladins. Six paladins and only five lions. He couldn't take Blue back from Allura. She was doing so well. She progressed a lot faster then any of them had. She was better at piloting Blue then he was. He'd thought Keith would be taking Red back, but then Shiro couldn't pilot Black any more. It was a shock, but Lance knew Shiro was a better right hand man to Keith then he was. Shiro would just pilot red. 

They didn't need him. He knew that. When he met a girl named Vha'Nixxa on a planet they'd liberated from the Galra, he made the decision to leave. He had packed a bag and ran to her ship the night she was leaving. The nomad made it clear that she wasn't going to go looking for his friends if he changed his mind. She'd take him with her but only if he was sure. 

He left with her that night. He stepped aside from Voltron. He knew it was the best thing he could ever do for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! I wanted to get it up this weekend because we're getting the keys too our new place on Monday so I'm going to be busy the next week or so. Plus it'll be a little while before we can get the internet hooked up.  
> I'll also be posting this on my tumblr.


	2. I don't know how to tell you

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really sorry! This chapter was done like, a week and a half ago (or something like that anyway) but my internet wasn't hooked up until yesterday, and we were having a little trouble starting it up until today.  
> Here it is though! The next chapter. I'm happy with parts of it and not to happy with other parts.  
> Coran and Lance bonding!  
> Also, there IS some Hidge (Hunk/Pidge) in this chapter. It's not a lot, and it can be read as platonic for the most part if you wish to see it that way! Also, I plan on writing it so that people who headcanon Pidge as Asexual can see their relationship as such.  
> Trigger warning for nightmare. It's not graphic at all, but it does mention pain and and stuff so... if that bothers you avoid the italics.  
> This is also another short chapter, but I plan on making the next one longer.  
> Anyway, enjoy this chapter! I hope it doesn't suck too much!

"I just can't believe any of this is actually happening." Hunk told Pidge. After he had gotten sick (for the first time in a long time) they had moved to the sitting room. Pidge sat down and Hunk lay with his head in her lap. Her small fingers played with his hair in an effort to calm him. "Lance is alright. He's alright." Hunk said, more to himself then Pidge.

"Do you want to go and see him?" Pidge asked.

Hunk shook his head, "No. He... he needs rest. I imagine this is as stressful to him as, if not more then, it is for us."

Pidge sighed, "I just can't believe he actually left because he thought he wasn't useful. I didn't realise he felt like that."

"I wish he would have said something." Hunk mumbled. 

"Well... he went to Keith. Or at least that's what it seemed like too me." Pidge pointed out.

"He really should have known better then that. Keith was already a good leader by then, but he still struggled with... you know... connecting with people all one on one. He should have come to us or something." The yellow paladin said, his brow frowning.

Smiling a little sadly, Pidge leaned forward and kissed Hunk's scrunched up brow, "Keith is the leader. It was right of Lance to go to him if he had concerns. Unfortunatly Keith is kinda intimacy challanged."

Hunk snorted, "You got that right."

It was silent for a minute before Pidge said, "He's changed since Lance left, though."

For a moment, it was silent again. Eventually, Hunk admitted, "Yeah."

"Lance seems different too." The green paladin pointed out, "I can't put my finger on what it is exactly that's different. He's just... not the same."

"He grew his hair out." Hunk said absently. Pidge couldn't tell if he was saying that's what was different or if he was simply adding on to her comment. "He used to keep his hair cut short because of all the swimming he use to do. You know he had all these medels he won from back when he use to be on his school's swim team?"

Pidge smiled, "I believe you mentioned something like that" He'd told her many times actually. He'd told her many stories about Lance while he was missing. It helped him, talking about his friend, and if she could help him by listening then she would. She'd spent many hours listening to Hunk talk about Lance. 

"He did. Bragged something terrible sometimes. He was the youngest, though, so I understand it. He just wanted someone to recognize what he accomplished, you know?" Hunk told her. Suddently, his face fell, "He just wanted someone to recognize his accomplishments."

"We should have..." Pidge agreed.

 

The pain was overwhelming...

It burned, it burned, it burned!

He tried to cry out but the presure on his neck was to great. It cut off his air. He couldn't breath. 

Why wasn't he fighting? Why couldn't he fight?

Why couldn't he think...

Why couldn't-

 

Sitting straight up in the bed, Lance gulped in large gulps of air. His heart thumped wildly in his chest, like a caged animal trying to escape. He place a hand over it, feeling the fast passed thumping against his hand. He closed his eyes and tried to slow his breathing.

Once he'd managed to calm himself he slipped off the bed. He wasn't going to get back to sleep right now. He was too full of adrenaline. He pulled on most of what he pulled off in order to sleep.

He made his way out of his room and through the castle. It was strange. Even after all this time he still knew is way around. Some things, he supposed, you just never truly forgot. What was that saying? 'It's like riding a bike'? The castle was quiet, the sounds of his footsteps echoing off the walls making him flinch a little. It was kind of unsettiling. Like that time the galra crystal had poisoned the castle and it kept trying to kill them. That was one thing he wished he could forget.

Lance eventually found himself wandering up to the bridge. Maybe he could find Coran and talk to him. Oddly enough, he'd missed him during his time away. He was basically the weird space uncle of their group and despite Lance being exasperated by him, he'd go as far as to say he loved him like family, no different from the rest of the paladins. 

Upon entering he found that his assumption was right. Coran was up there, by the looks of it calibrating something. Probably castle defenses.

Without saying anything, he stuffed his hands into his pockets and strode over to stand beside the ginger haired Altean. He watched Coran work. After being part of a two man crew on his and Nixxa's ship for so long he'd picked up a few things about ship calibrations. While it made things a little clearer, he still didn't understand what Coran was doing. Perhaps the Altean ship was just really different from other, less flashy ships? Or perhaps it was just way outdated by modern galactic standards.

"You had us all really worried about you, you know." Coran said eventually. He didn't say it in a scolding tone. He just stated it matter-of-factly. If anything that was worse.

Lance sighed, lifting his head to stare out at the vastness of space around them, "I know."

It was quiet for another minute or so. The sounds of Coran working filling the silence. Eventually, Coran stoped and turned to Lance.

"When I was young, Lance, I had a wife and child of my own." He began.

Lance gave him a confused look, "Okay?"

"Before Alfor and the original paladins allied together to try and bring peace to the universe it was... not a safe time. It was just as dangerous, if not more so, then it is now." Coran continued to explain. He folded his arms and looked out at space. "My wife and daughter were killed during this time. It's one of the main reason's why I was so loyal to Alfor. He worked so hard to make it so that his people could live in peace. So everyone could live in peace. Quiznak... even Zarkon worked for that before he's mind was warped by quintessence and the need for power." Coran went on.

Not knowing what to say, Lance placed a hand on Coran's shoulder, "I'm sorry. I can't imagine what that must be like..."

Coran looked at him again now, "Then I had to loose all of the Paladins. First Zarkon to himself, then everyone else. I suppose as a result I tried not to get attached to you five. This was a war we were fighting after all, and the odds weren't exactly in our favor."

"You could say that again." Lance said.

Coran smiled at him, but it didn't reach his eyes, "I guess it's inevitable. Bonding with those you fight with."

"And live with." Lance added, before stuffing his hands into his pockets again, "Why are you telling me this anyway?"

The older man sighed, "I guess I'm trying to say, you're like a child too me. All of you are, I guess. Maybe neices and nephiews. The point being, it was like loosing my daughter all over again when we lost you, Lance."

That... wasn't what Lance was expecting. Honestly he wasn't even sure what it was that he was expecting Coran to say. He didn't know what to do, so he turned to the window again. They were quiet for a long time before Lance managed to get a hold of himself enough to mumble out, "I'm sorry..."

It was quiet again for a while. Both of them not sure what to say, or perhaps not sure how to say what it is they wanted to. Eventually, Lance felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked over to see Coran had turned toward him again.

"Why don't we get you cleaned up before the other's get here?" Coran suggested.

Lance couldn't help but feel like he must look like a mess to them all. His hair was so scraggly and grown out. He was still in his gear, which had seen better days. It was dirty and the paint on some of the armor pieces was scratched up and worn. He hadn't shaved in the past couple of days either. While his facial hair didn't exactly grow fast, he'd still managed to end up with a rough, scatchy face. It dawned on him that he probably looked like he was in shambles, espically compared to how he kept himself before he left. Well, he tried to keep himself no less kept then that. He still did face masks, still got his beauty sleep, but there was only so much he could do about the scar on his face, and he didn't exactly have a castle fixing up and producing armor for him.

"Yeah. I ugh... I don't really like having facial hair." Lance said, rubbing the hairs on his chin. 

 

Coran had finished trimming his hair up for him when Keith came in. Now that his mind was on the topic of hair, he noticed something different about Keith's.

"Did you cut your hair?" Lance asked him, getting up from the chair he'd been sitting on.

Keith looked at him funny, "I... yeah?"

Lance walked over toward him circled around him, sizing it up. It was pretty short, there was a part of it that was shaved, even. How did he not notice such a drastic change to his hair? It was long and frankly bad before. Now it was... actually kinda nice?

"I like it. It suits you." Lance told him as soon as he was standing infront of him again.

Keith look... embarrassed? He avoided looking Lance in the eye and crossed his arms. It was kind cute. Not that he'd ever admit to thinking that.

"Pidge started growing her hair out after we found Matt. It was really annoying for everybody when they had the same hair because we kept mixing them up. Which, despite their height dfference, was surprisingly easy." Keith told him, "I guess I thought maybe I could change mine too? Since it was so horrible apparently..."

"It was. This is much better. And what? You guys found Matt? That's great!" Lance said happily. It was great. Pidge and Shiro were so worried about him, espically Pidge. He was happy she found him in one piece. He preyed she'd find her father too, but he knew that was less likely. The'd been no evidence to her father's where-abouts this whole time, unlike Matt. The chances of him being alive were pretty low. Even if she didn't say it, it seemed like Pidge had accepted that she probably wasn't going to see her father again.

Coran tossed the hair he had been cleaning up before speaking up, "Yes! That young man is certainly a character!"

Keith rolled his eyes, "You can say that again."

Lance was curious what they ment by that, but before he could ask Pidge popped into the room, "Hey guys? Everyone else just got back. Do you want me to get them together so we can talk now, or do you think we should let them rest first?"

Keith shook his head, "I don't think it's fair not to tell them about Lance."

Pidge laughed, "Yeah. What if they ran into him without knowing he was here? That would be hiliarious."

"Yeah, until someone else punched me." Lance said, giving Keith a sideways glace.

"I'm sorry, okay? It just kinda happened." Keith grumbled.

Coran turned and walked over to Pidge, "Let's get everyone together in the sitting room, shall we? It's probably for the better we have this conversation now rather then later."

Pidge argreed and they left the room. Lance was about to follow when Keith grabbed his arm to stop him. He turned to ask him what was up but then stopped when he saw the look on his face.

"You sure you're up for talking to everyone right now? I don't want to force you. Everyone will understand. If not I'll make them understand. Coran, Pidge, Hunk, and me can fill everyone in and you can go back to you're room if you're not ready." Keith told him, seemingly forgetting to let go of his arm.

Lance tried to swallow the sudden lump in his throat. This was... not right. Keith was suppose to be mad at him, not... not whatever this was. He cleared his throat but he still sounded wrecked when he answered with, "No time like the present, right? Plus I'd like to just get this over with."

Keith let go of his arm. "Alright." He said, before he started to head toward the sitting room. Lance quickly fell into step beside him.

"I am sorry though." Keith said out of nowhere.

"For what?" Lance asked.

"For punching you." Keith explained.

With a smile, he reached over and pat Keith on the shoulder, "Ah, don't worry about it. I probably would have punched me too!"

Keith snorted, "Good to know."

Lance let his hand drop and they continued walking in a comfortable silence. Keith had no idea Lance had stopped himself from adding 'I think we've both had a lot worse then a punch in the face'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah... not sure it turned out okay? It's mostly just set up. (like season 3 XP)  
> And I think Matt might make an appearance? lol, I like Matt until proven other wise. As a result though, the chapter is probably going to come out after season 4 comes out (which is only like, 13 days so) because I'm like, 90% sure Matt is going to be in it. It seem stupid to guess at a personality for Matt when it's so close to when we finally get to meet him?  
> Anyway...I hoped you liked it! Kudos and comments are loved and cherished : D  
> ~ Sparkle


	3. That could have gone better

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *throws this here and runs*

Hunk was sitting on the couch in their lounge. Anxiety flowed through him, making him feel as though he'd just injected energy drink straight into his veins. He'd been here for what felt like forever now, waiting to see if they were doing this meeting now or later. He couldn't decide which would be worse. Probably doing it later. The waiting would kill him for sure. When he seen Coran and Pidge enter with everyone else, he guessed they were doing this now.

Matt jumped over the back of the couch and sat not far from Hunk. He'd been at the castle when everyone had left to go planet side, so he'd tagged along. Personally, Hunk thought he just wanted to be around Allura. That was the funny thing about Matt, he was like a mix between Pidge and Lance. He was a total nerd and loved to geek about tech with him and Pidge, but he was flirty and goofy like Lance. It was... hard sometimes. He reminded him of Lance so much. Did it hurt Pidge at first to be around Lance? Did he remind her of her brother?

"Hey Hunk!" He greeted happily, giving him a two fingered wave in greeting.

Hunk waved back, trying to put a smile on his face without it looking to forced, "Hey. How was it down there?"

"Crazy! While we were in the meeting, someone shot a guy in the plaza!" Matt told him.

"I see..." Hunk said, not quite sure what it was he should be saying. Normally, talking with Matt was easy. Probably due to the fact that he was so much like both Pidge and Lance. Not that Hunk had problems talking with people. It was easy for him to have a conversation with just about everyone, but he didn't feel much like speaking at the moment. He just wanted Lance to get in here so they could hear what it was he had to say for himself.

"It was a real mess." Shiro sighed. He looked tired. Hunk wondered if his PTSD was keeping him up at night. It probably was, not that he'd say anything about it. Hopefully they wouldn't have a repeat of last time. "They were still looking for the guy who did it when we left." Shiro went on to explain, before turning to Coran, "Was there a reason we need to be here Coran?"

"Ah, yes. The reason should be here now in a minute." Coran explained, looking a little uncomfortable. Well, this was probably going to be a stressful few minutes for all three of them in the room that knew.

Shiro's brows crinkled together in confusion, but he didn't argue.

It was a quiet minute or so of everyone talking or just doing their own thing. Everyone who'd just gotten back seemed really tired. With good reason, they'd been down there all day. Well, what a day would be. Space didn't really have a consistent time and he had no idea how much time had passed on that planet. He kinda wished they could just do this later so that they could all go and rest, but he wanted to get this over with so much more. 

Pidge had moved to sit next him him, on the opposite side her brother was on. When the door wooshed open he felt her smaller hand reaching out and gripping onto his. 

"Um... hey guys."

~

Lance could feel his nervousness spike as everyone stopped what they were doing. The look on their faces would be hilarious in any other situation.

"Lance?!" Shiro asked, taking a step toward him.

"Um... yeah." He said, "it's me."

Everything was silent for what felt like an eternity. Lance couldn't tell how long he stood there, his hands sweating through his gloves, as all eyes in the room stared at him with disbelief. Most of them were eyes he knew well. Dark grey eyes, mystical blue and pink eyes, coco brown eyes, bright golden-hazel eyes, knowing blue-green eyes, and he assumed dark violet eyes.

But there were also new eyes. There were a set of yellow and blue eyes, with almost cat like pupils. There was also a set of golden-hazel ones, so similar and yet so different from the ones he knew. There was also a set that looked like they belonged too..

"Is that a cat?" Lance asked. It was a stupid question though. He could clearly see that it was a cat. A blue one, with bright green eyes. It hopped down from the couch and made it's way over to him, sitting down in front of him and staring at him. Lance couldn't help but feel like he was being evaluated or something.

"His name is Dwardi." Keith said, drawing Lance's attention. He was giving the cat a weird look.

"You guys adopted a cat while I was gone? Was I the impulse control or something? I thought that was Shiro?"

"Only when he wants to be." A familiar voice said. He looked up to find... Shiro? Except, except Shiro was still standing over there, and this one... he looked different. His hair was the same style he'd cut his hair after they rescued him from the Galra (well, he escaped, and Keith found him floating in space), he was wearing white, and his arm wasn't the same at all. This prosthetic looked more Altean then Galra. The not Shiro bent down, extending his arm. The cat, Dwardi, made his way up and perched himself of the man's shoulder. The not Shiro the proceeded to straighten up, scratching the cat's ear.

"Okay..." Lance began, looking between the not Shiro and Shiro, "Am I missing something?"

Shiro, the one who was still over near the couch, sighed, "This is Ryou. He's... a clone. I guess."

"A clone? A cat AND a clone?" Lance asked, before looked over at the other two unfamiliar people in the room. Well, one of them was a little familiar. Familiar enough that he could gather that he was Pidge's brother Matt. He wore rebel armor from what Lance could see. The other guy... he looked Galra. Lilac skin and eyes with yellow instead of white. But he looked kinda Altean too. He had the ears, and the long white hair (well, some Galra had white hair).

"I know. The shenanigans these people get up too." The purple man said. He spoke in a British kind of accent, like Allura and Coran, yet it was a little different. He seemed rather amused with the turn everything had taken.

"Right. This is Matt." Keith said, gesturing to Matt, who waved. "And this is Lotor." Keith said, gesturing to the Galra man.

"Right. Yeah, Lotor. What the Lazap guys!?" He asked, looking around at everyone. He couldn't believe how much everything had changed in his absence. He expected some change, but Prince Lotor? Zarkon's quizznaking son? Was casually hanging out in their lounge? And the Shiro clone they seemingly decided to keep and call Ryou? Keith cutting his damn hair?

Allura approached him, "Lance, we all need to sit down and have a talk. We'll explain everything if you explain where you've been all this time! We didn't know what happened to you. We thought the worst. Especially after Shiro."

He looked into her eyes. They were filled with emotions he could only begin to guess. Happiness, confusion, anger...

"Yeah. Yeah, I know." He said, looking away.

So they all sat down, some of them on the floor. They all took turns telling him about the events he had missed. They told him about their coalition, to which Lance laughed and said he'd seen some of the broadcasts. They told him about Lotor saving them from Haggar blowing them all up. He liked to make a dramatic entrance, Lance decided. They told him about finding out that the 'Shiro' Keith had rescued was, in fact, a fake. He was being controlled by someone, and the Galra arm had been part of it. They destroyed it and it broke the control they had over him. Pidge and Hunk had then made him another arm with the tech in the castle. After rescuing the real Shiro and destroying their lab, they dubbed the fake one Ryou and gave him different color clothes.

"But what about the cat?" Lance asked, gesturing to the blue cat still perched on Ryou's shoulder.

"We rescued him from a Galra prison." Keith told him, "He followed us back to the castle."

"Like a freeloaded." Ryou said. The cat gave him a look.

"Hm... what else is there?" Allura asked.

Matt raised his hand, "Oh! Oh! Hunk and Pidge are dating. They keep turning me into a third wheel."

"That's because you keep crashing our dates." Pidge said, punching her brother in the shoulder.

Lance looked back and forth at Pidge and Hunk, only now realizing how close they were, "Really? Ha ha, no way! Congrats guys!"

Hunk rubbed the back of his head, "Thanks man."

"Now..." Shiro began, cutting off Matt who looked about ready to say something else. By the way he was looking at Lotor, it had to do with him, "You need to tell us what happened Lance. Where have you been all this time? It's been... a while."

"I've been... around, I suppose." Lance said. It was the simplest explanation. He and Vah'Nixxa never stayed anywhere very long. They were wanderers, nomads, and he'd been all over the universe. To good places, to bad ones, and everything in between.

"But why..?" Shiro continued, his brows frowning in confusion.

Lance sighed, "Look. I left, okay? I left. Of my own free will guys. I left with a girl named Vah'Nixxa. And before you can say anything no, it wasn't a romantic thing. We're partners, but not like that."

"You're mercenaries." Keith said, giving him a disapproving look.

"What?" Shiro asked, looking back at Keith.

"What?" Matt asked, looking a little pale. Previous experience with mercenaries, Lance decided. Most likely on the wrong end.

Keith held Shiro's gaze for a moment before looking away, "He's the one who shot that guy down there."

Everyone turned to Lance, shock on their faces. Well, everyone who didn't know. Except Lotor, who more so raise one of his perfect brows in curiosity. Or something like it anyway. Lance gave Keith a 'gee, thanks' look, before shrugged and standing up, "Yeah. Well, what can I say? Gotta make a living some how. It's not exactly as glamorous as being a 'paladin of Voltron', but it pays the bills."

"Lance, killing someone for money is..." Shiro began, looking like he didn't even know what to say.

"He wasn't a nice man." Lance said, giving him a look, "trust me."

"That doesn't change anything." Shiro said.

Lance sighed, "Look. It is what it is."

"But why would you leave?" Allura interrupted.

Lance took a deep breath in and out. This was really starting to overwhelm him. But he needed to get this over with. He needed to tell his team everything. He owed them at least that much, he supposed. "I left because I was stepping aside.I knew it was best for Voltron. I knew I wasn't the best at being a paladin. If I didn't step away, someone else would of had too. We had too many paladins, and I was smart enough to know that I was the one who needed to step away." He told them.

They all looked at him again. Nobody seemed to know what to say. Both Allura and Shiro opened their mouths as if to speak only to close them again. Before anyone could say anything else Lance made his way out of the room. He heard someone call his name just as he reached the door but he ignored them. 

Once the door shut behind him he found himself running down the hall. He didn't really know why, he just needed to get out of there.

 

~

 

Nixxa barely payed attention to the man as he left, with quite a bit less GAC to call his own. All she could think about was her partner. Was he alright by himself? She barely knew the paladins of Voltron, and she didn't really know what to expect out of them. She'd only met them that time on... what planet had that been? Jangara? Nevith?

When the waitress came with her food she hardly paid her any attention.

"Something wrong Kampaberry? Where's Lance?" The waitress, Greeny (that wasn't even close to her name, but not many people could actually say her name, so they just all called her that) asked her.

"He's with his friends. Well, I guess old friends. They sort of ran into each other and I guess they're making him explain why he's not dead or something." Nixxa told her.

The cook, Heneg, popped his head out the window, "Ain't his friends those Voltron guys? I love them! I have an autograph from-"

"Yes, Heneg. They're the paladins of Voltron. Where did you even get an autograph?" Nixxa asked.

"I went to one of their shows! It was so good!" Heneg said, going back to work. They could still hear him going on about how cool the show had been.

Nixxa crossed her arms on the table and let her head fall into them with a groan. Greeny patted her shoulder in a consoling manner.

"It'll be okay." Greeny reassured her, "They're his friends right? They probably just want to know what he's been up to! How long has it been since they've seen him?"

"I don't know. Since he's been with me I guess." Nixxa mumbled, lifting her head up.

Greeny frowned, "My, that's been quite a while."

"It has." Nixxa agreed. She picked up her spork and began poking at her food. Why did the paladins of voltron have to be on the same planet as her and Lance? What were the chances? The universe was a huge place, after all. Now she was stuck waiting for... well, what became of all of this. Who knew how long THAT would take. And who knew how this would affect her and Lance.

"Don't fret sweetheart." Greeny said, "I'm sure everything will turn out alright in the end."

Yeah, but who know how long it would take to get there.

 

~

After a long discussion that could be summed up by the phrase 'that could have gone better', Shiro found himself looking for Lance. He wasn't sure he should be the one to go an talk to their former team mate. He was closer to Hunk and Pidge. And Coran. He'd even seemed to grow his friendship with Allura and Keith with he was gone. But somehow he was the one who found themselves heading toward his room, hoping that he was there.

Once he arrived, he found himself hesitating. He remembered when he got back and they'd told him everything he'd missed. Out of everything Lance's disappearance hit him the hardest. That might be odd, considering the clone. And Lotor. And Matt for that matter. It was just hard to accept that Lance had just vanished. They didn't even know what happened to him. If he'd been killed in action or something, at least that would have given them all some sort of closure or something. More then once Shiro found himself going to Lance's room on nights he couldn't sleep. He would sit on the bed and let his eyes wander all the knick knacks around the room. They all seemed to tell a story of the life of a happy, loving boy who kept a piece of all the places he'd seen and all the people he'd met with him. He would smile some days, thinking about his team mate. Other days he'd want to trash the place. Throw everything around and scream, the thought of going back to earth and having to tell Lance's mom that he son was gone overwhelming him. He couldn't even give her the comfort of letting her know her son's fate. It was no better then before. He was simply gone, she would just know that he'd been to space. That he'd fought in a war. That her son had been tainted and broken and he wasn't even able to come back home to her. Sometimes he would sit there for hours, hands clenched together and staring off into space, lost inside his head, when someone else finally came in and managed to snap him out of it. He wasn't the only one who would visit Lance's room after all.

Eventually he managed to take a deep breath and lift his hand, knocking on the door. When he got no answer he knocked again. Still nothing. He opened the door with the override code as a last resort. He found the room empty.

Cursing to himself he left the room, the door 'whoosh'ing shut behind him. 

Where would he go? He couldn't leave, he didn't have a ship on the castle, and he wouldn't take one of the lions (if they even let him pilot them any more). Would he try taking one of the pods? But he couldn't get very far in one of those, so he probably wouldn't take one. Unless his partner was still planet side waiting for him...

Shiro's pace quickened as he headed for the hanger. By the time he reached it he was running, desperate to reach it in case Lance was trying to leave. Luckily he wasn't there. All the pods were still there as well. Relief flooded through him as he stopped to catch his breath. Though if he wasn't in his room and he wasn't trying to leave in a pod, where was he?

His earlier thoughts came back to him and he had an idea. It was possible, right? After all, it was Lance.

He found himself moving again, heading towards one of the other hangers. 

Sure enough, when he entered the blue lion's hanger, he found Lance. He was sitting in front of the blue lion, his long legs crossed and his finger tracing patterns on the cold hard floor. His head hung low, his curls falling into his face. Shiro had never realized Lance had curly hair. He always kept it short, and at that length it didn't seem to want to curl. At this length, however, it twisted into soft waves and spirals. It made it look so incredibly different from the Lance he knew, the one he met in Keith's hut. Or... he assumed he'd met him in Keith's hut. Honestly, he could have know Lance at the Garrison for all he knew. There was so much in his head that was still... blank. 

"I hope they've been taking care of you since I've been gone. Have they been washing you down? Have they been vacuuming out your seats?" Lance asked the lion. Shiro wasn't sure if he got anything in response. By they way he looked back down at the floor, he kinda assumed he didn't. 

He felt his heart break for the younger man.

Lance continued on anyway, "I hope they've been washing red up as well. He likes it too. Keith never use to wash him down like I did. I haven't had a chance to talk with him yet. He's probably mad at me."

Shiro watched him for a moment. He was just about to approach him when he started speaking again.

"I don't regret it though. Leaving, that is." Lance told his first lion, "I think I needed to do it. For me. For the team. I needed to see things differently. I mean... I use to think if I just tried hard enough I could get better, you know? I wouldn't just be someone who was just... there." Lance sighed, running a hand through his hair, "Stupid, huh? Well, I grew up while I was gone. I know that putting your all into something isn't going to change things. Keith and Allura are always going to be better then me. They were just born great, you know?"

The look on Lance's face was heartbreaking. How could his say something like that with a look like that on his face? One full of such... acceptance?

"I'm not going to sell myself short." Lance continued, "I'm a good fighter. I'm a damn good shot. I know that. If I wasn't for me, Ni- ugh... my friend wouldn't be alive. But I was never a soldier. That's what Voltron needs. This is a war after all. I'm no soldier. I don't thrive in this environment. I don't thrive being put down and having your mistakes shoved down your throat. I thrive out there. Where, in the end, the only thing that matters is making it out alive. Earning that GAC or whatever the contact is paying. There are a lot of non-empire approved currencies out there. I doubt you guys have heard of most of it. Nobody here knows the right people for that kind of stuff. Doubt anybody here's heard of the nebula market either. It's like the black market or the deep dark web. Seriously, like the whole buying people thing and everything. It was weird. It was also weird to see people who were, you know, shady that would actually thrive with the empire gone. Cause the empire does have regulations and people like that are actually hunted by the empire. It's... weird. But I'm rambling now, sorry blue."

Shiro didn't know what to do. Lance was surprisingly open with blue. Was it because he knew she couldn't tell anyone? The lion's only had limited communication, so even if she tried to tell Allura about what Lance had said, much of it would get lost in translation. But Lance had seriously seen the space equivalent to the black market? He'd BEEN there? And what was this about not thriving?

He was about to leave when Lance suddenly got up. He stood, differently then the Lance Shiro had known, and smiled up the the lion, "I guess I'm gonna go say hi to red now. I'll catch you later, alright girl?"

Lance waited for a response. Shiro didn't know if he got one or not. Eventually he turned to exit the hanger. However, upon spotting Shiro he froze in his tracks. His eyes, deep as the oceans, bore into Shiro's. Had Lance's eyes always been that deep? Had they always been dark pools of blue that seemed to be filled with so much?

"Shiro. Hey. Ugh... how much of that did you hear?" Lance asked, rubbing the back of his head.

"Not much." Shiro said with a shrug. It wasn't exactly a lie. He had no idea how much Lance had said before he walked in. For all he knew, he only caught the end of a long speech.

Lance gave him a look like he didn't believe him, but he didn't say anything about it. "Was there something you needed?" He asked instead.

Shiro was going to ask him if they could talk, but then he thought better of it. They had already talked and it had led nowhere. He'd been dealing with Keith long enough to know that when someone got defensive and pulled back, it was time to try a different approach.

So, instead, he said, "You know... it's been a while since I've seen you in action. Why don't we head to the training room and you can show me what you've learned out there?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay! so... this has been almost done for like, three months now. I finally made myself finish my edits and post it.
> 
> Also, few quick notes!
> 
> *if there is no clone and Shiro is just brainwashed, that's fine. In this universe, Haggar took a different route.
> 
> *Lazap is a swear. It has no real 'definition' as such. It's not like, say, 'fuck' which can be a swear or mean 'sex' or whatever. it's just a curse.
> 
> *Also, this probably isn't important, but the reason nobody can say Greeny's name is because she's a plant lady. Their words aren't spoke with just vocal cords so it's impossible for most to replicate it.
> 
> * Yay! some Lance and Shiro bonding next chapter! (that shance in season 5 though, am i right!?)
> 
> *also, also, the cat wasn't part of the plan. He just sorta came along all by himself. 
> 
> (my bearded dragon tried to help name this chapter by crawling over my keyboard)
> 
> Anyway, hope this is an okay chapter! (I spent long enough on it)
> 
> ~ Sparkle

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! I wanted to get it up this weekend because we're getting the keys too our new place on Monday so I'm going to be busy the next week or so. Plus it'll be a little while before we can get the internet hooked up.  
> I'll also be posting this on my tumblr.


End file.
